Halcyon Barrel House: Curse of Knowledge (Organic Farmhouse Saison)

I've been either sick or busy with work for the past couple dozen weeks so I haven't had the opportunity to review anything recently. Jack came by yesterday with a big box of Beau's/Halcyon Barrel House products that I've never tried before, whenever Jack makes a visit, I know that I'm going to be trying some amazing beers!

Today I'm checking out Halcyon Barrel House's Curse of Knowledge organic Saison. This time last year, Beau's Halcyon Barrel House was named the fourth best new brewery in the world on RateBeer.com.

Curse of Knowledge is a barrel-fermented, barrel-aged blended farmhouse saison with brett. Spice and more delicate herbal, fruity and floral elements are rounded by its relationship with wine. Effortlessly drinkable, assumingly complex.

Appearance: Pours a clear golden straw body with a very light amount of carbonation in the body, and a quarter finger's worth of head alongside the glass with a good amount of sprinkling of white foam in the middle of the top of the beer.

Aroma: This is very sour-forward with a funky barnyard presence, as well as a good amount of vinegary sourness to it. The barnyard funk is very parfumic and reminiscent of beer festivals in Quebec and beyond - lots of lemon, a bit of bubble gum, a bit of sea salt & malt vinegar kettle-cooked potato chips, a bit of straw and an overall down on the farm theme. I got a good shiver from this beer just from my initial sniff of the beer.

Taste: My goodness, this is very sour up front, giving off a malt vinegar sort of presence to it (as well as a bit of sea salt), there's a good deal of barnyard funk that gives off a woody and barn-like aged presence to it. It's quite dry with a light sweetness of bubble gum. This beer has Pilsner and Rye malt in here, I do get a hint of spiciness from the Rye malt. As I'm letting it warm up, it has more and more of a pizza dough-like taste with it, with a taste of Italian spices.. I don't know how I'm getting those notes but they're popping up.

Overall Thoughts: I drink a lot of Saisons but this one is quite a bit more sour and Brett-themed than most I've had in well over a year - this one has a great Brett presence to give it a bit of a barn woodiness, a bit of straw, and a sourness that I don't typically get from visiting a barn (I should know - I spent much of my life shovelling out barns growing up). I feel like Curse of Knowledge is an organic Saison that would age really well.. if I didn't decide to open it up as soon as I got a bottle. This is sour with a good deal of a kettle cooked sea salt & malt vinegar potato chip vibe to it, a bit of barnyard funk, a bit of bubble gum and a good amount of dryness that requires some water after sampling this beer. If you love wild yeast-themed beers, you'll love this, and if you like that with a surprising hint of Italian seasoning, you'll enjoy this even more. Maybe my palate is just playing on me after several weeks of illness/exhaustion?

Cody Lobreau

Welcome to BeerCrank.ca! I'm a bit obsessed about craft beer, especially Canadian craft beer so I mainly review Canadian beer but I love to try beer from all over the world as well. My goal is to help influence the casual beer drinker to go out and expand their beer palate one way or another. Feel free to send some feedback!
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